A Proper Goodbye
by someonestolemyshoes49
Summary: Damon doesn't tell anyone about his werewolf bite, and instead decides to leave town to save Elena and Stefan the pain. He returns to Mystic Falls some months later with a couple of messages to convey. Warning: Character death. Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey all! So, I know this has been done a million times before, but the idea has been bugging me for a while now, so I figured, why the hell not? **

**And thanks to all of you who read my last fic, I was so pleased to get some feedback. By all means, drop me a review here to ;) **

**Disclaimer; nope, still not mine. But Christmas is coming up, so...**

**Apologies for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes.**

"You're leaving?" Breathed Elena, looking a sorry mixture of confused, upset and worst of all, hurt.

Damon shrugged a shoulder, glancing between the wreck of a girl before him and his equally off-balance brother. A pang of regret made him think twice; a throb in the crook of his elbow brought him right back on track.

"Eh, you know, small towns grow real old, real fast. I'm sure the two of you will manage just fine without me." He forced the words out with as much ease and grace as is normal in everyday conversation, and finished off with a grin he was sure would sell his honesty.

Stefan regained himself with a snarl.

"You can't leave now. Not after what happened yesterday! You-." He paused, glancing at Elena, whose eyes had yet to leave Damon's face. Stefan lowered his voice to a hiss, though the two of them were well aware that, even with average hearing, Elena could catch every word. "You can't leave her now."

It was Damon's turn to curl a lip.

"She doesn't need me. She's got you, and Jeremy, and Caroline and Bonnie. She's got whole galaxies worth of people just orbiting around her."

It wasn't his intention, but he still found himself a little glad when Elena's look of sadness morphed into one decidedly more aggressive. Good, he thought, let her be mad. At least she's not crying.

"No offense, sweetheart." He added with a wink that only fueled her anger.

"I can't believe you." She spat, before turning on her heel and stalking away. Stefan flashed furious eyes at Damon, but whipped around and followed Elena without a second comment.

Alone in the Boarding house, Damon sunk into an arm chair, exhausted. The damn bite was draining him, and he knew he needed to leave, now, before he had a chance to change his mind, or had time to lose it. But he was just _so_ tired.

He shook himself into focus and sprung from the couch, telling himself he had the energy to up and leave. He headed for the stairs ready to collect some of his personal affects, but stopped when he realised that, where he was to end up, he wouldn't be needing anything.

* * *

They searched for almost two months before they heard any news.

Elena hadn't been able to rid herself of the guilt that lingered in the pit of her stomach ever since Damon left. Yes, she'd been hurt, and upset, and so, _so_, furious, but she hadn't wanted him to leave without a goodbye. So they searched, and they searched. Together with Stefan, she turned every stone, exhausted every lead, but found nothing. For all they knew, he has literally disappeared off the face of the earth.

It was a Wednesday night when they hit big.

She and Stefan were hunched over the coffee table pouring over a couple of old road maps, each one covered in dots and pins of various colour and size, and meaning seemingly nothing. After a time, Elena slumped back and rubbed her face with her hands. No words could describe just how tired she was. Stefan, still slouched beside her, looked no better.

"Elena..." He said from behind his hands. She glanced at him, but said nothing in reply. Stefan continued. "Maybe...maybe it's time we stop. If he hasn't surfaced now, he probably doesn't wanna be found."

Elena glared at him. She couldn't believe he was willing to give up on his own brother.

"It's not like he's been taken, 'Lena. He chose to walk away. We don't need to find him."

"_I _need to find him." She sighed. Stefan raised his hands in surrender and sat back to rest his head against the back of the couch.

* * *

Upstairs, Jeremy listened to his sisters conversation and felt his stomach clench at her words. He was tired of her sounding so upset. She hadn't been herself since Damon left, and he knew exactly why she was clinging to this. She wanted to find him because she _could. _Because he wasn't gone forever. He hadn't had his heart torn from his chest by a crazy hybrid, and he hadn't given his life's energy so she could have her own. He had walked away, and she wanted to bring him back because it was a possibility; a chance she didn't have with Jenna, or with John.

"She'll get over it." Said a voice from Jeremy's window. He jumped from the bed in shock, but stilled when he saw the rooms newest occupant. Damon stood, arms folded, leaning casually against the window frame.

"Dude, where have you been? Elena's been looking for you for months."

"I know." Damon replied calmly.

"She's downstairs now, with Stefan. Go down and see her, she'll be over the moon you're back." And for the first time in a while, he felt himself smile with genuine happiness. Elena would be happy. Elena would get her goodbye. Elena wouldn't have to cry herself to sleep anymore. But the look on Damon's face made Jeremy's smile falter.

"She can't see me, Jer." Damon replied, sounding oddly pained at the words. Jeremy frowned.

"Why not? You can't come back here and leave again without speaking to her. Come on! She'll be so happy to see you again."

"No, Jeremy. She _can't _see me. Neither can Stefan. Neither can anybody."

"But-." And then he understood. And that understanding sent a chill down his spine that settled in his bones. He felt the colour drain from his own face.

"What happened?" He whispered.

Damon looked off to the side, for a moment or two, before turning his gaze back to Jeremy. Something had settled there; something defiant. Whatever it is he wanted, he wasn't backing down.

"I need you to talk to her, for me."

* * *

"Hey, Jeremy." Elena said tiredly at the sound of footsteps in the sitting room. She and Stefan glanced raised their eyes to greet him, but froze on seeing the ashen pallor of his features. "What's wrong?"

He opened his mouth and gaped for a moment or two, before speaking as calmly as he could.

"There's someone here to see you."

Elena and Stefan raised their brows in unison, waiting for Jeremy to elaborate.

"He has a message." He said. "He wants me to tell you...to tell you that he's sorry. He's sorry he ever hurt you. he's sorry for all the times he's made you angry and all the times he's made you suffer." He turned his gaze to Stefan and, with a deep breath and in a tone so full of pain it choked his voice to use it, "he's sorry for being such a lousy brother."

Stefan looked puzzled, as did Elena, but only for a moment. When the truth of the matter registered Jeremy saw the walls around his sister come tumbling down.

"No." She whispered. "No, Jeremy, no, no, no."

A lump lodged itself in Jeremy's throat. He turned his gaze to Damon, who stood by the wall, looking on with so much pain in his gaze that Jeremy had to look away again.

"Tell her I left for her. I didn't want her to have to lose anybody else. I didn't want her to have another grave to mourn. Not then. Not after everything with Jenna. I just didn't want to hurt her again."

Jeremy relayed the words with tear tracks on his cheeks, and what little resolve his sister had crumbled. She sobbed. Harsh, gut-wrenching sobs. Stefan looked blank, as though the news hadn't really registered.

Damon watched Elena with widened blue eyes shining with tears of his own. He moved across the room and kneeled in front of her. He reached out a hand as though to offer her comfort, but drew it back.

"Tell her I'm here." He said, his voice choked and broken. "Tell her I'm right here."

"He's in front of you, Elena. He – he wants to comfort you."

"But I don't know how." Damon whispered.

"What happened?" Stefan asked, his voice sounding distant.

"Werewolf bite. The night of the sacrifice. There was nothing they could have done." Damon replied, and Jeremy relayed the information. Elena sobbed harder still.

"I n-never said goodbye." She cried, her voice so choked by tears it was barely audible. "I was so _angry_ when he left, I never got to say goodbye. Oh god! The last - the last time I spoke to him...I was so angry!" She rocked a little where she sat, and the despair was enough to wrench a small sob free from Damon's throat.

"Tell her it's okay."

"I'm not mad anymore. I never meant to get angry!"

"Tell her I believe her."

"I didn't want him to leave! I never w-wanted him to leave."

"Tell her I know."

"He knows, Elena. He believes you. It's okay."

"Please stop crying..." Damon whispered. "please don't cry over me. I hate it when you cry."

"He wants you to stop." Jeremy said, his voice hoarse. Elena's sobbed stopped abruptly and she looked to Jeremy, doe-eyed and pale faced. She hiccuped with the effort to hold in the emotion, but remained resolutely silent.

Damon bowed his head to clear his own emotions, then moved to kneel beside Stefan.

"He says 'Hey, brother.'" Jeremy said, conversation now directed to Stefan.

"Hi." Stefan replied, hoarsely.

"Tell him I'm not mad at him anymore. Tell him I haven't been for a long time, not really. Tell him I'm sorry I let so many things get between us. I'm sorry I abandoned him when he was scared. I'm sorry I left him to go through all of this alone. And that I want him to be happy. And that he needs to keep strong and stay with the good guys. No more off-the-wagon sessions. He needs to be the strong one now. He needs to keep an eye on you, and on Elena."

The words, once fallen from Jeremy's lips, ripped a sob from Stefan's throat, too.

Damon lowered his head again, and after a time, raised it to look at his brother again.

"He says man up, grow a pair." Jeremy said. All present choked out a small laugh.

They remained in silence for a while, until Elena broke it with soft words.

"Where – where is he? Where did he -." She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence, but they all knew what she meant.

"The tomb. That's as far as I got." Damon said.

The information caused fresh sobs from both Elena and Stefan. Jeremy bowed his head, partly out of respect, and partly to hide his own tears. Damon had moved to kneel between his brother and Elena, and switched his gaze from one to the other in turn.

"He's been here, in Mystic Falls this whole time." Elena said through tears.

"Nowhere else I'd rather be." Damon whispered, wishing she and Stefan could hear his voice.

"Can we bury him? Please?" Stefan asked. "We can talk to Sheriff Forbes. She'll help us keep the...circumstances quiet. I don't just want to drop him in a hole. I want to give him a proper funeral."

Jeremy looked to Damon for an answer, knowing that Stefan was asking for his brothers permission. Damon nodded his reply.

"He says yes."

* * *

"Not every day you get to see your own funeral." Damon said, hands in his pockets as he stood beside Jeremy in the grave yard. It had been a teary send off, to Damon's surprise, as an assortment of people had stood up before the crowd of mourners to speak of Damon's life. Sheriff Forbes has spoken, as had Stefan and Elena, even Caroline and Bonnie had stood up to say a few words.

Jeremy gave a small, discrete laugh at Damon's words. Elena and Stefan had come away from the grave after laying a couple of roses on the coffin, and made their way over to Jeremy.

"Nice turn-out." Stefan commented, looking out across the small sea of mourners. It was true, a lot of the townsfolk had turned up, much to Damon's surprised.

"Wonder how many are here to spit on my grave." Damon muttered, and again Jeremy snorted a laugh. Stefan looked at him with a curious expression before Elena spoke.

"Is he here?" She asked, wide-eyed. Jeremy hesitated, then nodded.

"I hope it was okay." Elena whispered. "We tried to make it as Damon-esque as we could." She gave a small smile, and Jeremy grinned as Damon returned the gaze.

"It was great." Jeremy assured.

"Best send-off a guy could have asked for." Damon said with a warm smile that lit up his eyes.

"Only the best, brother." Stefan said. Elena looked up at him, then turned to look at the space Jeremy knew Damon stood in, and with an accuracy borne of naturally knowing where to look to meet his gaze, looked him right in the eye.

"A proper goodbye."

**A/N: Oh wow, I had to write through tears a couple of times there. But it's done! I actually had a dream where something like this happened, and I felt like it had to be put on paper. I hope you guys liked it! It was kind of rushed, but still, I hope it turned out okay. I was too sad to read it through again! **

**Please, leave me a review and let me know what you thought! **

**Until next time, **

**Much love, **

**Something x**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi all! Here's part two. I didn't even know I would be doing a part two, but it came to me in a dream...literally. As did part one. You know you read too much fanfiction when you start dreaming up new ones.**

**This part does contain a bit of stuff from 2x22, but it does have a bit of a spin on it, so it's not (exactly) like watching the episode in written form.**

**Thanks to everyone who favourite me and my story, or alerted us, or followed us, or left us a review. Or all of the above! We (being me and my story. He has feelings too, you know. Sad ones.) are incredibly grateful!**

**I hope you all enjoy part two. Contains a (very predictable) twist. Please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer; again, I own nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Unless my wonderful new Damon poster counts? No? Didn't think so.**

**Apologies for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes.**

Her body jerked upright, and her limbs fought to tug the sheet from her sweat-slicked body. Confusion took over for merely a moment, before she registered where she was; home, in her own bed. Greyish dusk light filtered in through the blinds, slanting against the bedroom floor. The alarm clock read 5:03. Elena dropped back against her pillows and wiped her face with her hands. Liquid came away, and it took her some time to register what it was. A grungy combination of sweat and tears.

The aftershock of her nightmare had her heart jack-hammering in her chest and her eyes leaking fresh tears. But it was all a nightmare.

Or not.

Reality sunk in too soon for her liking. The sacrifice; Jenna, newly-turned, a stake driven through her chest; John, giving up everything to give Elena another chance; Damon, forcing his blood between her teeth and down her throat. _Damon._

She scrambled from her bed and stumbled clumsily across her room in the semi-darkness, hands grasping for the door handle. It was only when she wrenched it open and the light from the corridor spilled in, carrying with it the quiet voices of Jeremy and Alaric from downstairs, that she paused for breath. They were talking about Jenna.

"I just – I can't believe she's gone." Jeremy whispered, and Elena could hear the hollowness in his tone.

Alaric mumbled his melancholy agreement and the sound of ice on glass filled the silence.

Elena shuffled back to bed, feeling only a little more at ease. Damon couldn't be gone, it had only been days since Jenna's death. Her mind had simply added another terror to her already too-long list while she slept.

And because of that, she was far too afraid to go back to sleep. So she remained awake for the next few hours, until, at eight, a soft knock told her it was an acceptable time to be up.

The door swung open, slowly, and Stefan came in, looking a mix of uneasy and concerned.

"Morning." Elena said. Her voice came out hoarse, giving the impression she'd been crying. If Stefan noticed, he didn't mention it.

"It's, ah- it's about time to get up. We've..." Stefan paused, as though trying to force out some reluctant words. "We've gotta be at the cemetery soon."

Elena stiffened beneath the sheets, but nodded to Stefan and kept her gaze low, waiting for him to leave. He took the hint, and Elena heard the door creak and click as it closed.

* * *

"How's she doing?" Damon asked, eyes darting to the door and back. Stefan blew out a breath between his lips.

"She lost the only parents she had," He said, pursing his lips a little to hold back some near-overwhelming emotion, "She's in shock."

Damon nodded. He was worried; so, so worried about her. Stefan watched him closely for a minute as they waited for Jeremy to come back out of Elena's bedroom.

"Are you okay?" Stefan asked his brother. Damon turned sharp eyes on him, but nodded.

"I'm fine. It's not my day to be anything less." Damon bit his cheek through the lie. He was anything _but _okay. He had a werewolf bite eating the flesh at his elbow and making his mind swim in ways that made memory and reality blur into one indecipherable mess.

Again, Stefan pursed his lips, but he said nothing. Damon let out a breath when Stefan's gaze was turned. The bedroom door opened, and Jeremy stepped out, nodding to the two vampires.

"She'll be out soon, then we can go."

* * *

A chill wind blew, nipping through the skin of her exposed flesh as she lay the roses on the graves. Too many loved ones were buried here. This earth held too much; the ground was too full. She remembered reading something in a book, or maybe she heard it in a movie; _soon there will be so many dead people there won't be enough room for the bodies. _The thought brought on the tears she'd been trying to hold off.

She fought her way to her feet and looked out to see Damon in her vision, and she sobbed at the sight. His face was filled with something she couldn't place, and she labelled it as 'pain' in her head. Or at least, as much pain as a man who was willing to take away her choices could feel. The thought made her irrationally angry, once again. She dropped her gaze to the ground, away from him, and let more tears fall.

* * *

"We're all gonna head back to the house." Stefan jammed his hands in his trouser pockets and rocked on his toes, waiting for Damon to reply.

His brother twisted the daylight ring absently on his finger, looking out far ahead and seeing nothing.

"I think I'll skip the coffee and teacakes."

"Damon, she needs us right now. All of us."

"And then what's the plan, Stefan? The curse is broken. How does one go about killing an all-powerful wolf-vamp, and his two-faced older brother?"

"I have no idea." Stefan replied, resigned.

"We need to get an idea. Fast."

"I'm not gonna let Elena lose anyone else." Stefan sounded a mixture of tired and determined in his words, and it made Damon bristle.

"I wouldn't make any promises, brother." He rolled up the sleeve of his jacket and his shirt as he spoke, wincing at the pressure against the decaying flesh. His brain jostled at the fresh pain.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Tyler Lockwood bit me."

* * *

Damon had stopped by, and Elena felt irrationally exhausted after the visit. He wanted her forgiveness? What had he expected? Surely not a complete apology, hugs and kisses and all.

But something made her uneasy. He had looked so _broken_ when she'd given her answer. She needed time, why was that so hard to understand? He'd seemed too resigned in his acceptance for her liking. But she didn't have time to over-analyse it; her day was planned. A movie with Jeremy, Caroline and Bonnie seemed like the perfect way to pass the time.

* * *

Home didn't feel like home, anymore. He hung his jacket on the back of a chair that didn't feel like his, and when he took a bottle of the best from the wet bar, it felt oddly like stealing. Opening the curtain felt good, though; it felt certain. And draining his glass and standing in the sun light for one last time? It felt wonderfully final. If Elena needed so long to forgive him, there was no point in sticking around for it. Sure, maybe a day or two would have been worth it, but he had no _idea_ how long she would take. And he didn't want to wait to find out, not anymore.

Dropping his daylight ring to the floor hurt more than he had anticipated, and the blister of his skin was enough to make him want to cry out. But he didn't. He held it back, because he wanted his death to be somewhat dignified.

But the blow to his back as he collided with the floor came as a complete shock.

* * *

"Damon was bitten."

Elena's eyes bulged a little in their sockets as she took in Stefan's words. _No. _No no no no no. This part was a dream. This hadn't happened. This wasn't happening.

"What?" She breathed, "Is it – is – is he gonna...?"

"Yeah." Stefan dropped his eyes to his shoes and nodded, forcing the sudden rush of emotions back to wherever they came from.

"Oh my god." She whispered, and when Stefan eyed her with curiosity, she replied, "He came to the house this morning and – and tried to apologise. I practically slammed the door in his face." She kept the dream to herself. That was what had shocked her the most. She struggled a little to keep calm, but managed to force the muscles of her face to remain steady as Stefan began to speak again.

"He told me not to tell you, but I figured if you wanted to talk to him, I wouldn't wait."

* * *

Elena wanted to head straight to the Boarding house, but she paused in the car to relieve some of the pressure in her mind and chest. She let some tears and some sobs run their natural course, and allowed the emotions to well, because she didn't want to release them in front of either of the Salvatore brothers. The intensity of the emotional pain she felt right now was, sadly, not a new sensation. She'd felt it at three memorable times in the past. Once on the night her parents died, again on the night of the Sacrifice, and on one other occasion. This last time stood out, because there was no real reason for her to feel such pain. It was a poem she'd read in a book she couldn't remember the name of that had given her such a terrible, irrational grief.

_She rocks in the wooden chair once; twice; thrice, _

_And thinks about everything and nothing _

_And the floorboards creak beneath her feet,_

_But nobody is around to care._

_Outside the wind blows hard; strong; fast, _

_And she wants more than anything to be outdoors_

_And she watches the glass panels rattle in the pane _

_Wishing somebody was there._

_A tap on the door sounds knock; knock; knock,_

_And she waits for the visitor to leave _

_And she knows that they won't stick around long _

_She thinks 'This isn't fair'._

_The bathroom door locks, thud; click; click, _

_And she sits on the bath rim with a razor in hand _

_And thinks 'the world will do fine without me.' _

_The pain is more than she can bear._

_The blood hits the tiles with a drip; drip; drip _

_And she panics as the world begins to fade _

_And she wants it to stop. She calls out for help._

_But nobody is around to care._

**A/N: So, another depressing ending for you! But I'm planning a part 3 (should end there, unless it takes so long for me to write that I publish it when it's only half done...again) so keep your eyes peeled for more.**

**Sorry that this one is mostly scenes from the episode, but I needed a filler between the first chapter and the next one. Fingers crossed you all enjoy it? Please let me know what you think**

**Reviews are always always always welcome, never forget that!**

**Much love,**

**Someone x**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I know its been a while, but here it is! Part Three of my tear-jerker fic. Please read and review. **

**The ending is rushed, so it's not the best in terms of written quality, but read-read-read away and let me know what you think! **

**Disclaimer; again, I own nothing! We've established the poster doesn't count, and I'm sure DVD's don't count either. **

**Apologies for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes. **

The boarding house was quiet when she entered. Dust flitted between the rays of sunlight spilling in through the window, but besides that miniscule movement, an eerie stillness had settled over the building. She pulled her jacket tighter to ward off the Goosebumps.

"Damon?" She called, pausing to listen out for signs of life. Nothing. "Damon?" She tried again, panicking when she recieved no reply. The third attempt yielded the same result.

She hurried through the building, jogging up the staircase and checking every bedroom and bathroom, but there were no signs of her friend. Now almost delirious with worry, she flew down the stairs and down another level, to the basement.

"Damon? Where are you?"

This time, she was answered with a groan. She liked to think it sounded like a mumbled 'Elena' but really, she knew better.

She rounded the corner and flung herself in front of the door to the cellar in which they'd locked Stefan the previous year, when a sudden onset of blood-lust had left him too dangerous to leave in the public eye. And there she saw him.

He was lying half on his stomach, one hand braced against the floor. Elena could see the muscles straining as he tried to force his body up off the floor, but a coughing fit overtook him and he spat blood onto the cold stone, rolling away before his arm had a chance to give way beneath him. He groaned again, and Elena let out a small whimper.

"Damon." She breathed. His eyes, still on alert in comparison to his slow-motion muscle movement, darted to the bars in the door. He squinted a little to look at her.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, and it sounded as though her were trying to be angry, but he didn't seem to have the energy.

"Stefan...Stefan told me." She replied, watching him with wide eyes. She'd never seen Damon so weak before. He coughed again and moaned against gritted teeth as a wave of pain washed through him.

"Oh, Damon." She couldn't keep the sympathy out of her voice. He was going to die like this. _He doesn't deserve this, _she thought, _nobody does. _

"Save the pity-party for someone who gives a damn." He growled, but the look that came over his features immediately after the words were uttered showed just how much he regretted them. He winced. "Sorry," He breathed, "being confined to the cellar of my own house makes me a little...snarky."

Elena allowed a small smile to grace her lips. At least he was trying to be somewhat humorous about the situation.

"Speaking of," she said, trying to keep the tremor from her tone, "why are you down here?"

Damon made the effort to raise his brows.

"Stefan didn't tell you _that_?"

Elena shook her head. Damon let his drop to the stone and sighed.

"I might have...tried to...end my suffering."

Elena bristled.He _what? _

"You _what_?"

And for the first time since he dropped that damn ring, he started to feel guilty. He rolled big blue eyes to look at her, and the gaze on her face made his insides freeze. She looked so...devastated.

"I-." But he couldn't find a way to explain himself that didn't sound incredibly selfish. He sighed, stifling a groan. "I was hurt. I was hurting. I was being an ass; a completely selfish ass."

Elena looked at him with wide eyes. He'd tried to kill himself? Why?

"How?" She asked, her voice sounding shallow. He held up his hand in response, and she noticed for the first time that his daylight ring was missing. _Ah, _she thought, _that explains the cellar. _ "So Stefan shut you in here to keep you out of the light? So you wouldn't do it again?"

"Bingo." He said, lying his head flat on the floor and breathing deeply.

"Would you?" She asked, hesitant. "Would you have done it again, if he hadn't locked you in here?"

Damon remained silent. Elena took it as a yes.

She shook her head at him, tears cascading down her cheeks. Damon frowned at her.

"What's with the water works?" He asked. Elena gave him a glare.

"Oh, I don't know." She said angrily. "Maybe it's because best friend is _dying_? Just a thought."

Damon froze at that and forced himself to sit upright. He eyed her through the bars, wide eyed and open mouthed.

"Best friend?" He asked. Elena opened her mouth to shout at him for being so damn selfish, but she stopped when she heard the softness, the surprise, in his tone. She felt the fight drain straight out of her.

"Yes, Damon. I consider you one of my best friends." She gazed at him, and couldn't help but smile softly at the wonder that lit up his eyes. And then more tears came. He didn't know. And now, he has about a day to come to grips with it before he's gone. _Gone. _

"I had no idea." He murmurs. "You're always...always angry at me." She closes her eyes and looks at the floor. "I'm always giving you reasons to hate me. Hell, I killed your brother, and you still came running back."

Elena watched him through teary eyes, fighting to keep the sob in her throat. This could _not_ be happening. This had been part of her dream; this had been the one ray of hope for her when she woke up that morning, the one thing that her cruel mind had imagined. But here he was, coughing up blood on the floor in the basement, purple flesh crawling its way up his arm, poisoning him slowly, so slowly.

She could hear footsteps upstairs now. _Stefan must be home_, she thought. She didn't want to get in between the two brothers in Damon's last hours, and so, in a hurried voice, she spoke again.

"Hey, I know I get mad, sometimes. I know I say so many horrible things to you...but just...just know that at the end of the day, it doesn't mean anything, okay? All that matters," she choked, glancing at the staircase. "All that matters is that you're my best friend. You're part of my world, and there will always be a place for you in it. Okay?" Her voice was shaking, and she saw tears in Damon's eyes as he nodded. And then she ran

She crept through the living room and to the door, conscious of the sounds of drinks being poured into glass. One more drink for Damon. She hurried outside and into the cold air, and towards her car.

Just as she clambered inside it, she noticed another vehicle in the drive way. Alaric. So it wasn't Stefan. And knowing that, she couldn't fight the urge to go back inside.

As she headed back towards the house, though, she had the overwhelming feeling that she was being watched. She turned, but saw nobody. But when she twisted back to the house, a hand clamped firmly over her mouth. Sheriff Forbes.

_No. _

**A:N/ Aaaaand we're back to the episode. Just a little three-shot, but it was okay, write? Tear-jerker? I hope so. **

**Leave me a review, let me know! **

**I know the ending was hurried, but I'm focusing more on my one-shot collection, and I didn't want to leave this unfinished. **

**Thanks in advance, guys. Oh, and if you haven't already, please pay a visit to my one-shot collection, Closer, for a read, and let me know what you think of that, too! **

**Thanks and much love, **

**Someone x**


End file.
